Wanna Start A Commune?

Stephanie Smith, founder of Ecoshack, designer of modular tent cities, yurts, Beekeepers' huts, and tipis, is hoping to bring the commune back to the forefront of American culture with her new project, Wanna Start A Commune?

Having started a number of living-off-the-grid experiments in Joshua Tree, she's now exploring the communal idea "in an ongoing series of design and cultural projects that bring a collective attitude to places where it doesn't yet exist."

Like cul-de-sacs.

"Do you live on a cul-de-sac? Or a dead-end road? Or an apartment building (or condo) with an interior courtyard? Why not come together with your neighbors and share resources? Create a shared compost pile, gather weekly for potlucks and friendship, start a recycling program, barter services, share childcare, or anything else that you cook up."